Diane Dougherty's Blog

Tuesday, February 14, 2012


WHO'S CONTROLLING WHOM?/Bishops at War About Women and Reproductive Capabilities

http://www.concordmonitor.com/article/311102/whos-controlling-whom?SESSb1e1ef98fce7d4a918305aa2a63a1dad=google
Church is not the victim here
By Katy Burns
..."Make no mistake. It is a war. And it's not a war about "religious freedom," as the crusading bishops and their conservative supporters, including a parade of pandering Republican presidential wanna-bes, would have you believe. It's a war about women and who will control their reproductive capabilities. It is a war about birth control, especially the relatively easy, inexpensive and effective birth control provided by the Pill, IUDs and other devices that have in the past 50 years revolutionized the world. For the first time in human history, women have been able to participate fully in the world in which they live. The results have been dramatic as women have moved in force into academe and into the workforce.This includes millions of Catholic women, in this country and elsewhere, despite the fact that their church holds that using artificial birth control of any kind whatsoever is a "grave" sin. Such liberation - particularly when some of those women start questioning their subservient role in the Church as well - doesn't sit well with many members of the Catholic hierarchy, an authoritative and autocratic bunch of celibate men who seem obsessed with controlling the reproductive lives of the rest of the world...."
Bridget Mary's Reflection:
Excellent analysis that leads to the heart of the problem- sexism and sad, but true, misogyny. Until we have women priests and a married priesthood in the institutional church, the Roman Catholic hierarchy will attempt to control women's sexuality as they have in the past. We have a prophetic movement of Roman Catholic Women Priests that is causing a holy shakeup in the Vatican now. We stand in solidarity with women worldwide in opposition to the U.S. bishops over this latest affront threatening contraceptive coverage as an issue of human rights and religious freedom for women worldwide. And the majority of Catholics affirm our position.
 Women of the U.S. and world are waking up to the bishops' debacle as a power and control grab by the institutional Roman Catholic Church! I agree that it is a war of the male hierarchy of the Roman Catholic Church against contraceptives for women of the world.
Bridget Mary Meehan
 sofiabmm@aol.com
Association of Roman Catholic Women Priests
http://www.associationofromancatholicwomenpriests.org/